The two-piece, non-aluminum handguard design was first prototyped for early AR-10s, after which the first AR-15 designs utilized a two-piece handguard system made of Bakelite-type material (early synthetic plastics). These two-piece handguard systems utilized two side halves rather than a top-half and bottom-half design. The first two-piece handguards with a top and bottom design was introduced with the CAR-15, also known as the XM-177/GAU-5 series carbine. This design led to the two-piece handguards for the M16A2 rifle in the 1980s.
Since the introduction of these earlier handguards, a number of manufacturers have developed improved polymer handguards. For example, many modern equivalents of those early handguards offer ergonomics (for the forward gripping hand) and mounting interfaces for firearm accessories. With traditional handguard systems, it was difficult to incorporate both of these advantageous features because the only mounting interface that was available was the Military Standard 1913 Picatinny rail. The Picatinny rail is considered by many to be extremely uncomfortable to handle, unless the railed areas are covered with rail panels. With rail panels installed, however, the overall size of the handguard is too large. To solve this problem, two-piece handguards were developed that utilize a different accessory mounting interfaces. Examples include the KeyMod handguard by B5 and the MOE handguard by Magpul.
Most polymer handguards are injection-molded and manufactured in two pieces, including an upper half and a lower half. Although injection molding is a preferred method of manufacture because it is relatively inexpensive, precise, and versatile, polymer materials are weaker than the traditional aluminum handguard.
The present invention is aimed at one or more of the problems identified above.
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